The Years that Follow
by Black Pirate
Summary: Ten years after the Battle for Atmos, a new threat as risen. Will the Storm Hawks be enough to defeat it? Or has their mysterious decade in the Far Side changed them too much from the rambunctious kids they used to be? Friendship, love, adventure, and mystery all play a part in the most challenging fight of the Storm Hawks lives.
1. Chapter 1

**Hey guys! Long time, no post! I've been thinking about this story for quite some time, and decided to let it free. It has been some years since my last story. I hope you guys enjoy!-bp**

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It had been ten years. Ten years since the terror of Cyclonia had been vanquished. Ten years since the young Storm Hawks team had vanished into the portal to the Other Side, never to be seen again. Starling walked the streets of Terra Atmosia, toward the Council building. She had been on the council for three years as the representative for active sky knights, being one of the older sky knights still active. She smiled to herself. Forty-four and still able to outpace most of the younger generation of knights. Her eyes glanced up to the flag that waved over the Council building: a sky blue hawk in flight, against a white background. Atmos owed everything to the Strom Hawks. The absence of the great team left a large gap in Atmos' defenses. Lately, some of the members of the Council had pushed for the reformation of the legendary team, but Starling would hear none of it. She was convinced that they were still alive, and no length of absence would convince her otherwise.

Despite the long absence of the legendary team, Atmos was expiring a golden age of relative peace. There was still plenty to do for the sky knights, between pirates, night crawlers, and groups of delusional talons convinced that Cyclonia would rise again, but attacks were few and far between. Since the war to end all wars, the ranks of the sky knights had changed as well. Harrier had retired finally retired last year, being the oldest sky knight in the force at fifty-two. Starling yet to meet the Rex Guardians' newest sky knight, but she had heard good things about her. Crane. That was her name. There had also been some loss. The entire Third Degree Burners squadron had disappeared into the wastelands, never to be seen again, for any apparent reason. Suzy Lu had been killed defending Blizzaris from Murk Raiders three years ago. That one still hurt to think about. For Starling though, the absence of the team who took practically her in was still palpable. She grinned to herself, thinking of some of the foolish antics those kids would get up to during the time that they had spent together. They wouldn't be kids anymore. They would have grown into young adults. Was it possible that they had become an even better squadron, with age and experience to guide the natural talents that they exhibited in the war against Cyclonia? If so, even the boldest of Murk Raider attacks would seem like a cakewalk for them.

Caught up in these thoughts, Starling found herself walking past the Council building and toward her skimmer. She no longer felt that she could sit in a dusty room with equally dusty elders, who would be waffling on about air space policies. The day was perfect for a ride. Perhaps she would visit the final resting place of her old team. Stopping off at a flower stall, she purchased some purple orchids and mounted her skimmer. She hadn't visited her old team in a few months, and she felt the need to be by herself, and get lost in memories.

Dove had worked hard to accomplish her goal. She had become the weapons specialist for the Rebel Ducks of Terra Gale. She had grown since the Battle of Atmos. For one, she no longer used kitchen gear for protection, but had fashioned herself some real armor, including a helm that protected both her head and the sides of her face as opposed to a cooking pot. She kept her hair short, and her body had become lean and elegant. She was told by admiring male fans that she was beautiful, but she didn't pay them any mind. She simply focused on arming her team with the latest weapons and crystal combinations. At the moment though, she was grumbling with frustration and throwing a blade across her worktable. It had rejected the wind stone that she was trying to synergize with it by spitting it out of the holder and across her workshop. Dove was at her limit.

She had tried to work the wind stone into all sorts of weapons to no avail. She was forcing herself to conclude that the stone had to simply stand alone when the ground beneath her feet started to shake violently. The tremor threw her off her feet and onto the floor. It felt like the entire terra was collapsing. It was a full minute before Dove could regain her footing. She raced outside, where she met her grandfather, Wren, who was leaning on his walking stick for support. He was staring at the sky behind her, eyes wide. Dove turned. Above her home, the air had begun to shimmer with waves of green light. Dove reached for her crossbow, which was slung across her back. The light looked poisonous. Suddenly, shapes began to form behind it. The shadows were indistinguishable, but growing larger. Then, a vehicle of sorts emerged. It was almost like a chariot, but was being pulled by four, winged beasts. They were coal black, scaly creatures with leathern wings and red eyes, with fangs that protruded from beneath their lips and claws growing from two toes at the end of each foot. The occupants of the chariot were two men, both with black hair and red eyes. Dove shivered. They both bore an uncanny resemblance to the Dark Ace.

Dove gave a start when another flying chariot emerged, followed by another, and another. It was a stream of them flowing from the light portal. A stream that did not cease. Dove gripped her crossbow firmly, while calculating the shortest way to the lever that sounded the alarm, should these strangers prove violent. If so, she did not like the odds that she was facing. Without warning, fie of the chariots, and the beasts that pulled them, broke away from the main group. Flying in V formation, they flew directly for Dove and Wren. She pushed her aging grandfather behind her, and stood her ground. Dove did not run from a fight, if that's what was coming. Sure enough, a red energy bolt struck the ground inches from Dove's feet. She fired her crossbow in return, the bolt hitting one of the beasts square between the eyes. They reminded her of sky sharks, but with legs. The beast she struck screeched and reeled, dragging the rest of the chariot down with it. They disappeared beneath the cloud line. Hopefully they crashed in the wastelands.

The other four chariots veered and turned back towards Dove. One of the riders pointed his fist toward her. What she thought was armor started to glow, and a blast of red energy left his arm, and, forming into a point, started speeding towards her. Dove leapt out of the way, knocking Wren down with her. The bolt just missed, exploding where their feet had just been. Dove regained her footing, calculating. She was outnumbered one hundred to one, seriously out-gunned, didn't even know whom she was fighting, and with her squadron on patrol at least five leagues away. Dove never ran from a fight, but in this case…

Dove ducked a few more energy bolts, and fired a few arrows back. She dragged her grandfather back with her toward the garage, thinking if she could make it to her skimmer that they would have a chance. Suddenly, the garage exploded, knocking Dove and Wren back. Their chances of survival just went up in flames, quite literally. They both took refuge behind a small hill. Dove maintained a tight grip on her crossbow. She would go down fighting.

Another shadow started to form behind the light wall. It grew larger and larger, much bigger than the chariots. Something big was coming: maybe a support ship. Dove tried to hunker down even more, bracing herself for a large attack. Suddenly, bright blue energy bolts blasted out of the portal, and into the crowed of beasts and chariots. The riders screeched and urged their charges further from the light, away from the terra, and into the clouds. The shadow grew bigger still until it burst from the green light. Dove gaped at the familiar sight. A grey carrier ship, with a blue hawk in flight emblazoned on its side, was soaring over Terra Gale, blasting at the flying chariots. It was a vision from the past. Three skimmers took off from the hanger bay. Dove could have screamed with joy. Instead, she fired bolt after bolt at the strange attackers with new confidence. The strangers ran from the reinforcements, vanishing towards the wastelands.

A yellow glow flowed from the bridge of the ship and towards the portal. It washed over the poison green, constricting it down until it disappeared and there was nothing left but clear sky. Dove raced towards the house as the three skimmers turned to land on the terra. She grabbed the speaker of the radio and turned the dial to a specific channel.

"Dove to Starling. Dove to Starling. Storms 'ave returned. I repeat, storms 'ave returned."

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**So let me know what you guys think! I'll continue with the story, if I receive motivation (hint reviews motivate me). Like I said, it's been quite some time since I've published anything, so I'm interested in what you guys think. No flames please. Much love-bp**


	2. Chapter 2

**Here's chapter two! I don't own the Storm Hawks, unfortunately, but everything else is mine. I'm excited about where this story is going.-bp**

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Dove raced outside as the same old skimmers pulled to a halt in front of the door in a cloud of dust. The man in the front dismounted. His bright red hair was tied back into a short ponytail, with a few strands falling in front of his green eyes. There was a faint scar on his right cheekbone, but the twin blades at his back and his lopsided grin was exactly the same. On his shoulder was a small, blue, furry creature. The creature's tail was longer than Dove remembered, and there was a hoop going through one of his ears. He also had a small dagger tucked into his belt. The man just behind the leader had his blond hair cut short, and was sporting a small goatee. He had a large crossbow strapped to his back, and a quiver of arrows belted to his side. Next came a wallop. He was tall, even for a wallop, and had clearly grown into his body. They all had. Dove set off at a run. "Aerrow! Finn! Junko! Radarr!" The redheaded leader sprinted towards her. They collided in a hug, swiftly followed by the blond man, then the wallop, who picked everyone up in a monster hug. Once he set everyone down, Dove was knocked off her feet by a small blue cannonball that hugged her tightly. Everyone was laughing.

"It's good to see you again Dove." Aerrow exclaimed, helping on her feet again. He then looked towards the terra and the sky beyond it. "It's good to be back." The Condor landed on the far end of the terra and the main hatch opened. A woman with long blue hair in a braid, a belt with several pouches and holding a tall staff, was standing at the top of the gangplank. She started running towards the group.

"Piper!" Dove exclaimed, and embraced the woman. She grinned, orange eyes dancing.

"Hi Dove. You've grown." Piper laughed.

"So 'ave you." Dove replied. She still couldn't believe that the Storm Hawks were standing in front of her, very much alive and well. A green merb then emerged from the ship. Stork's black hair still fell in front of his eyes, and his form was lanky as ever. Finally catching up, he flashed a small smile to Dove before speaking.

"I hate to break up this little reunion, but we now have over two hundred screamers loose on Atmos, and that was just from one portal. We should probably go warn them." Dove looked at Aerrow.

"Screamers?" She didn't like the sound of that.

"That's what they call themselves." Aerrow explained. "Or at least, that's what Cyclonis called them." Dove really didn't like the sound of that.

"Master Cyclonis? She is still alive?" Aerrow gave her a grim smile.

"No. She died some time ago." He and Piper exchanged a small glance before Aerrow continued. "But only after she teamed up with a very dangerous man called the Overlord. For seven years, Cyclonis filled his head with ideas of conquering Atmos. They almost succeeded breaking through around two years back. But we stopped them. Overlord never gave up on the idea though. We were too late to stop him this time." Aerrow gestured to the sky. "This was one of many portals he opened. Who knows where the others opened up." Dove just smiled.

"But the portal brought you back 'ome as well. Some good 'as come out of it." At this, Finn jumped in.

"And this particular portal brought the Finnster right back to you Babe." He performed and elaborate bow while waggling his eyebrows at Dove. The sound of a different voice interrupted what was likely to be a rude response from her.

"Well at least some things haven't changed." Starling was hovering over them on her skimmer, her purple hair shining bright in the sun. She landed neatly and dismounted. Aerrow marched briskly up to her and saluted. Starling saluted back, looking the sky knight up and down. Aerrow was now taller than her, by almost a foot. His body was leaner, and his armor shone. The ten years away had been very good to him. Breaking into a smile, she dropped the serious act and pulled Aerrow into a tight hug. "Welcome home friend." She whispered into his ear. Aerrow grinned, as they broke apart.

"Starling. You haven't changed a bit." The rest of the team cut off Starling's response as they greeted her in a less dignified way, pouncing on her in a hug tackle, and pulling Dove with them. As happy cries emerged from the pile, Aerrow took in the sights around him, and breathed in the air. The pale orange light rolled off the puffy clouds as they peacefully drifted past. The sun shone brightly in a clear blue sky, casting its beams on Aerrow's face. He stood still, allowing a breeze to run playfully through his hair as he breathed it all in. Atmosia. Everything screamed home and freedom to him, unlike the endless dark of the Other Side, and the Overlord. Steering his thoughts away from unwanted memories, Aerrow turned his attention to the pile that was his team.

"Alright Storm Hawks. We need to go warn Atmos of the Overlord." Finn got back to his feet.

"Why don't we just gather everyone together like we did last time and attack before he gets a chance to dig in?" Dove nodded.

"They seemed terrified when you blasted through that portal. 'Ow 'ard can it be to fight them?" Aerrow shrugged.

"Those Screamers weren't expecting us. Besides, they're just pawns. There are other, more dangerous, weapons that the Overlord has. I'm not risking our friends with a frontal assault. Besides, the way he operates, he's most likely found a spot and already dug in. And he could be anywhere. It's better to make sure everyone knows about he Overlord, and teach them how to beat his armies and their creatures." Piper stepped in.

"Aerrow's right, Finn. We have to warn everyone. Atmos is in serious danger." Finn only nodded in reply. Starling was startled seeing the dark looks on all the Storm Hawks faces.

"So," she began "this Overlord. Is he like another Master Cyclonis?" Stork shook his head grimly.

"Overlord is worse. Much worse. We've been fighting him for a decade. Atmos is really in for the war of its life this time." Starling grinned with no humor.

"The Storm Hawks are going to swoop in and save the day again?" Aerrow chuckled.

"We didn't save the day. That was all of Atmos' victory." His face darkened. "I only hope we'll be able to help this time around. It won't be easy." Piper put a hand on Aerrow's shoulder.

"Since when do we like anything that's easy?" Junko nodded vigorously.

"Yeah! And we can get sky food combos! I haven't had those in years!" Starling laughed. She laughed harder than she had laughed in years. Despite a new danger threatening Atmos, her friends were back, and the same. She couldn't think of anything that was better than this.

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**So let me know what you guys think! Reviews are welcome. Much love-bp**


	3. Chapter 3

**So here's chapter three! I hope you enjoy! (and I don't own Storm Hawks)-bp**

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_CRACK! The whip sounded out again. As a searing pain laced down the young man's back, rivulets of blood started coursing across the shredded skin. He gritted his teeth but did not cry out. A low laugh sounded from behind him._

_"Still won't make a sound, boy?" The voice was a smooth whisper. "You will, with time. I like breaking my toys before I play with them." The whip sounded again, with another slice of pain. The man bit the inside of his cheek, letting his head hang. Both of his arms were suspended with chains that were attached to the ceiling. His red hair, dulled by dirt and blood, fell into his eyes. He stiffened when a pale white hand lifted his chin. Black eyes stared into his defiant green ones. _

_ "Oh yes. You will be excellent fun."_

Aerrow forced his mind back to the purple haired sky knight walking beside him, and out of the memory that threatened to over take him. Starling was looking at him expectantly.

"Sorry Starling." He said, shaking his head. "I didn't catch that." Starling gave him a quizzical look. "It's nothing." He reassured.

"What I asked," Starling repeated, "was now that you and the rest of the Storm Hawks are back, are you going to find a home terra? You have had many offers." Aerrow shrugged casually.

"The Storm Hawks have never needed a home terra. We like roaming." The famed team had been back in Atmos for a week now, to great acclaim. Their warnings of the Overlord had not fallen on deaf ears. Portals had opened all over, flooding the Atmos with Screamers who caused untold amounts of destruction. What worried Aerrow now was that they had all vanished. Nothing could be found of them. In the mean time, the Storm Hawks had stayed on Terra Atmosia, filling the Council in on anything that they knew about the Overlord and his goons, which was quite a lot. That information then had to be passed on to the rest of the sky knights and their squadrons throughout Atmos. Starling had read the brief and was not surprised. For the most part, it sounded just like another Cyclonis and her Talons.

She and Aerrow now walked down the street, drawing stares from the people around them. Aerrow smiled.

"You always knew how to attract a crowd Starling." Starling rolled her eyes, and laughed and the young man's innocence.

"They're not staring at me, Aerrow. They're staring at you." Aerrow looked at her sharply.

"Me? Wha…?" Starling cut him off.

"You single handedly united the terras of Atmos, led the charge against Cyclonis, resisted her rule for six weeks, and then defeated her. Not to mention disappearing into ledged, and the Far Side, simply to chase Cyclonis down. Kids have been raised on stories of the Storm Hawks. Your Storm Hawks." Aerrow looked at her, then to a small boy staring with awe and hanging on his mother's hand. Aerrow grinned at him, and the boy's face split into a huge smile. Aerrow chuckled.

"I guess being legends isn't so bad." He said hesitantly. "I just hope we can live up to it." Starling placed a reassuring hand on his shoulder.

"You will. I know it." As they neared the Condor, the sound of Finn's voice floated toward him. He was leaning against his skimmer, and surrounded by five or six young women, all of whom giggling.

"Yeah, after I swung in shooting arrows, saving a couple of team mates in the process, those murk raiders took off. They just couldn't handle the fighting styles of Finn." He stroked his beard and struck what he assumed to be a manly pose. The women all giggled. Then one piped up.

"We all know that story. We know all your stories in Atmos. What about the Far Side? What did you do there?" Finn's cocky grin slid just a little, but quickly recovered.

"Nah. The Far Side was boring. Atmos is where all the fun was. I bet you guys don't know about the time I defeated Ravess with my smooth musical stylings?" He winked at Aerrow as he and Starling passed by.

"And then there's Finn." Aerrow muttered to Starling, who simply rolled her eyes.

A few of the girls glanced over their shoulders at Aerrow, and looked away, all the while nudging each other and blushing. Aerrow just smiled a greeting and continued towards the open hatch of the Condor. Starling left him there, promising to see him in the morning for yet another briefing with the Council. Aerrow continued up the hatch, and into the ship he called home. While the six team members had grown and changed so much, the Condor had remained miraculously the same. The different shades of metal lined the walls like a patchwork quilt. Her pipes and joints still creaked. She had held together in the Far Side despite everything that happened.

Aerrow walked onto the bridge, where he found his science officer sitting cross-legged in the middle of the table and surrounded by crystals. They floated all around her, and she glowed with a light blue sheen, eyes closed in concentration. Aerrow turned back toward the hanger, not wanting to disturb her.

"I know you're there Aerrow." The calm voice sounded behind him. Aerrow pivoted slowly, and met the golden eyes that were now open. The crystals were now lying haphazardly on the table.

"Sorry." Aerrow said. "I didn't mean to interrupt." Piper only grinned.

"It's okay. If I had really wanted to meditate, I would have picked a quieter spot." She hopped off the table and reached Aerrow in a few long steps. She studied his face intently. Aerrow was perplexed.

"What?" He asked, playfully flipping her long braid off her shoulder. Piper just shrugged.

"Nothing. I was just making sure you were okay." Aerrow's grin dropped instantly.

"I'm fine Piper." He said, almost harshly. Piper shrugged again to hide the mental kick she gave herself. Aerrow only opened up when he wanted to.

"I know." She said, throwing him a sly grin, instantly alleviating the frosty mood. "But it gives me an excuse to stare up into those gorgeous green eyes of yours." Aerrow just rolled his eyes and childishly stuck his tongue out at her. Piper winked in response, and returned to the table, deliberately over-exaggerating the swish of her hips. Aerrow grinned. The two of them had been casually flirting like this for the past four years. It had started when Piper had given Aerrow a kiss on the cheek for his twentieth birthday. They had never taken it past that level, despite Aerrow's almost overwhelming desire to do so. There had been the Overlord to fight, and there were no room for distractions, even one as tempting as Piper. But now that they were back in Atmos…

Aerrow jolted, forcing his mind back to the present, and away from such a dangerous line of thinking. He had stopped himself from going this road before. He would stop himself now. There was too much at stake. Instead, Aerrow just joined Piper at the table. She was hunched over a chart, looking at a particular cluster of terras. She pointed to them excitedly.

"These are new Aerrow. I got this chart today, and they aren't on my charts. New terras! Can you imagine it?" She looked up at him, excitement gleaming from her eyes. Aerrow resisted a strong urge to kiss her, and simply grinned back at her.

"Then that's where we'll go first." Piper's eyes clouded with confusion.

"Aerrow, we have the Overlord to fight. Should we really be wasting time exploring?" Aerrow sighed, turning serious.

"The entire time we were… over there," he started "we wanted to return here, and back to the life we used to have. I know we aren't the same people that we were when we were fourteen, and that we didn't plan for Overlord to come to Atmos, but we have friends who can help us now. We could use some time off." Before Piper could respond, a voice sounded from the doorway.

"Time off?!" Piper and Aerrow whirled around. Standing at the entrance was Finn and Junko, with Stork and Radarr peering around the corners. "Please tell me I didn't imagine you saying that. Like, an actual vacation?" Aerrow felt five pairs of pleading eyes on him. Aerrow mentally calculated. It had only been ten years and six weeks since their last break. He suddenly grinned.

"Piper, give Stork the coordinates for those new terras." The rest of the team cheered.

"When are we going Aerrow?" Junko asked, his ears flapping excitedly. Aerrow's grin broadened.

"I'm thinking right now." Piper gaped.

"Now? But… Aerrow… the council. We haven't finished briefing them on Overlord…" Aerrow gently cut her off.

"We've given the council enough. Besides, when do we follow the rules?" Piper paused, considering. Aerrow felt a thrill course through his vanes as Piper smiled, beautifully.

"Stork, race you to the helm!" Stork chuckled.

"Oh, you're on." He dashed off, with Piper hard on his heals. The entire team was guffawing as the Condor took off from Terra Atmosia, and for a brief moment, they were all fourteen again.

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**So I hope you enjoy! Have a wonderful weekend! I myself shall be returning college for my senior year (merp). Much love-bp**


	4. Chapter 4

**Hey guys. Sorry about the hiatus, but now I'm back. Please enjoy the chapter!-bp**

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Aerrow was shocked that there was no retribution from Starling, or the rest of the Council, for leaving Terra Atmosia so suddenly. Starling had radioed him early the next morning, but it was simply, as she put it, to make sure they hadn't disappeared to the Far Side again. After that, the Storm Hawks had been left alone. Weather people had been ordered to do so, or everyone was falling back into old habits, Aerrow didn't know. He enjoyed the idea of old habits though. Even old routines were coming back on the Condor, despite being ten years out of practice. Everything had become more relaxed. Even a small skirmish with seven Screamers, when they had suddenly risen out of the Wastelands, hadn't raised the tension. The team had beaten them easily, sending the flying chariots back under the cloud line.

The new terras that had been on Piper's map had turned out to be a maze of plateaus, rivers, and waterfalls, which caused a fine mist to wash over everything. Radarr had discovered an underground series of rivers and waterfalls that had carved tunnels so smooth, they could be used as slides. He and Aerrow had spent hours rocketing at high speeds through them, to be deposited into various pools on different levels. Piper had found a crystal that was embedded under tree roots, and had set up an outdoor lab to further discover their properties. Junko had started with helping her, but had found that berries that grew on the trees were, as he put it, deliciously sour. Finn had to fix his skimmer, as the wing was busted in the skirmish with the screamers, but he was at least able to work outside and in the sun. Stork, claiming that the mist was actually toxic brain spores, elected to stay in the Condor.

Piper delicately touched a laser to the tip of the pale green crystal, attempting to remove a smaller piece so that she could grind it down to powder. She had almost cut all the way through when Radarr suddenly came rocketing down a waterfall and landing in the pool next to her. Piper flipped up her goggles to glare at the little creature. Radarr shook water out of his ears and grinned at her, a little bashfully. A wild whoop came from above as Aerrow shot out from another waterfall. Radarr flailed madly as he tried to get out of the way, but to no avail. Aerrow crashed on top of him, and caused a wave of water to splash over Piper's feet. Piper shrieked, leaping away from the chill that soaked into her boots and landing on a low tree branch. Radarr exploded from under the surface, chirping furiously. He bounded up onto a rock, and shook himself again, glaring at the point where bubbles were breaking the surface of the water. Aerrow's head slowly broke the surface of the water. He grinned when he saw Radarr clutching the rock and glaring at him.

"What?" He asked innocently.

"I'll tell you what!" Piper's irate voice sounded behind him. Aerrow turned, and his grinned widened when he saw Piper sitting in a tree. "Here I am," she continued "working peacefully, on a delicate crystal powdering procedure with an unknown crystal, and you and Radarr…" At this Radarr chirped indignantly. Piper corrected herself. "Sorry Radarr. Okay, just you Aerrow. You're breaking my concentration with your splashing and yelling and general fooling around!" Aerrow swam towards her, grinning.

"Sorry Piper. Here, let me help you out of that tree." Piper waved him away.

"I don't need any help, thank you very much. Gah! What are you doing?" Aerrow had reached up from underneath her and had grabbed her ankle. "Aerrow, No!" Piper could only manage a small shriek before Aerrow pulled her off the tree branch and into the water. They tumbled over each other, Piper struggling to break free from Aerrow's strong grip around her waist. Upon breaking the surface, she immediately started to viciously splash him. "Why would you do that? I was in the middle of a delicate procedure, and now I'm going to have to get changed because I'm soaked, so I'm going to have to restart everything and it's all because you and your completely childish notions!" Aerrow simply laughed, and started splashing back.

"Take it easy Piper! You looked like you could use a break. There's something I want to-" he was cut off by a particularly large wave of water hitting him across the face. He spluttered, spitting out water. Piper giggled.

"Serves you right for pulling me in." She resisted the urge to childishly stick her tongue out at him. Instead of retaliating, Aerrow held out his hand to her.

"Come on. I want to show you something." Piper took his hand and he guided her through the water, towards one of the tunnels that he had been using as a water slide. Piper froze.

"Are we going down there?" she asked, eyeing the dark tunnel. Aerrow squeezed her hand.

"It'll be okay." He said, his voice soft. "I'm here." Piper forced herself to take another step toward, but froze again. Aerrow noticed she was shaking. He immediately pulled her into a hug. Piper buried her face into his shoulder. "I'm sorry." He whispered. They stood like that for a few minutes, still waist deep in the little pool. Piper then took a deep breath.

"No, I'm sorry." She said into his shoulder. She gave herself a little shake, and pulled away from the embrace, her voice stronger. "I don't want to live with… this for the rest of my life." She grabbed Aerrow's hand again. "Let's go down." Aerrow paused.

"Piper, you don't have to do this. I shouldn't have suggested it. I wasn't thinking." Piper moved toward the slide again, pulling Aerrow behind her.

"Don't try to change my mind Aerrow. I want to see what you wanted to show me." She let Aerrow climb on in front of her, then sat down behind him, arms firmly around his torso.

_"Not afraid of the dark girl? Let's see if we can change that."_ The voice came unbidden into her mind. Aerrow felt her stiffen behind him, and turned to face her.

"We really don't have to do this. It's not that interesting anyway." Piper didn't respond, but pushed them both down the slide. They immediately started hurtling down the tunnel. Aerrow resisted the urge to whoop at the sudden burst of speed. He instead focused on the pair of arms that were wrapped around him, and the woman they were attached to. Piper was clinging to him, her breath coming out in hitches whenever they made a turn. The two of them were going faster and faster, until they suddenly shot out into a pool. They must have been in a cave of some sort because the pool around them was completely dark. It was too much. Piper closed her eyes and felt a scream welling up inside her chest. A pair of hands clasped her face, and a voice cut into the fog of fear that was clouding her mind.

"Piper, it's okay, open your eyes. You're all right. I'm here. Just open your eyes and see." Piper, against her better judgment, opened her eyes slowly. Her vision was slowly filled with a pair of worried green eyes. Wait… she could see.

Aerrow watched her as she took stock of her surroundings, hoping that she would enjoy his find, and that it was worth sliding through hell for. They were indeed in a cave, standing up to their waists in water again. The cave was lit by tendrils of crystals that spread up the walls like spider webs. The soft blue light was reflected in the water, then back up in Piper's wide eyes. She looked back at him, and a smile broke across her face.

"Oh Aerrow," she breathed. "it's beautiful. They're like the crystals in the tree. This whole terra could be veined with crystals, like they're what's giving it life!" Her excited golden eyes met his green. They were so close, he could count her eye lashes. Her excitement at the discovery was practically making her glow. He smiled with her.

"Do you like it?" he asked.

"It's amazing! Aerrow, this is one of the most beautiful things I've seen!" Aerrow couldn't help it. He raised a hand and cupped her cheek gently, and with one breathed word, 'Piper', he gave into the temptation that had been haunting him since he was fourteen. He brushed his lips against hers, softly, and pulled away. He was shocked when she pulled him back and smashed her lips on his, and there they stood, surround by the soft blue light of the crystal cave.

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**So that was that. Let me know what you guys think. Hope you all have a great holiday :)-bp**


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